November 17, 1920

380
LENIN MISCELLANY

Then (in October 1920) they switched to taking not live cattle, but meat (13 pounds from a cow, 26 pounds from a pig, 7 pounds from a sheep, etc.). The peasants were very satisfied with such a change.

Now they have again begun taking live cattle: again there is discontent and embitterment among the peasants.

2) Silkovskaya Volost, the estate of the former Baryatinsky (and a German, then, apparently...*), probably more than 1000 desyatinas.

All of it was taken under Soviet husbandry; the land lies fallow; they are allegedly drawing millions from the treasury; in 1920 they plowed no more than 5 desyatinas. Ten horses remain (there were about 100), 30–40 cows (there were 200). No one is making an effort. Furniture has been carried off, etc.

The neighboring peasants are in great need of land and are greatly complaining that they are not given either meadows or land.

(Nik. Semenovich Bodyakov, Silkovskaya Volost, village of Filippovo, Mosalsk District, Kaluga Guberniya.)

I request that Bryukhanov and Sereda commission a report and give it to me no later than two days.

Can this be satisfied? Or what is the obstacle?

Lenin

16029

DECREE OF THE COUNCIL OF LABOR AND DEFENSE
NOVEMBER 17, 1920

In view of the necessity of restoring, in the shortest possible time, the railroad structures destroyed in the zone of military operations, the Council of Labor and Defense decrees:

1. Grant to the Revolutionary Military Councils of the fronts and separate armies, within the limits of territory under their jurisdiction, the authority to declare the work of restoring destroyed railroad structures to be of military-urgent character, adopting for this purpose the following measures:

a) militarize in the established order for a period of up to 3 months the workers and employees engaged in such construction, applying the general regulation on militarization of November 28, 1919, and with exemptions in accordance with the decree of the Council of Labor and Defense of June 9, 1920;

b) provide to the employees and workers engaged in this construction, by agreement with the Chief Food and Supply Department for the Red Army and its local organs, the Red Army ration;

c) by agreement with the local organs of the field military and naval inspection of the RCI, establish exemptions for such work from the rules of the decree of the SNK of July 15, 1920 concerning accounting operations on the basis established by this decree.

2. The Revolutionary Military Councils of the fronts (armies) shall report without delay on all detailed measures to the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic and the People's Commissariat of Railways.

3. Work on the restoration of destroyed railroad structures, recognized as militarily urgent by the fronts (armies), shall be supplied by the Supreme Council of the National Economy and its organs in the first instance with the materials necessary for the construction.

4. In connection with changes in the operational situation at the front, the military-urgent character of work on the restoration of destroyed railroad structures may be terminated or annulled by order of the same Revolutionary Military Councils of the fronts (armies) and by the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic, with advance notice to this effect to the NKPS.

Chairman of the Council of Labor and Defense

V. Ulyanov (Lenin)

Printed from the original signed by V. I. Lenin.

5864

NOTE TO A MEMBER OF THE COLLEGIUM OF THE PEOPLE'S COMMISSARIAT OF LABOR
November 20, 1920

I request that you arrange a conference tomorrow with representatives of:

Protective Clothing Department
Chief Coal Administration
and the Chief Supply Administration for Military Clothing and the Chief Clothing Department for an investigation (in accordance with the telegram of the Deputy Revolutionary Military Council of November 20, 1920) of the reasons for non-fulfillment of the decree of the Council